1. health and fitness
2. disorders
3. mental disorder
4. bipolar disorder

Treatment-Resistant
Bipolar Disorder
Michael Gitlin
Despite the remarkable increase in medications validated as effective in bipolar disorder, treatment is still plagued by
inadequate response in acute manic or depressive episodes or in long-term preventive maintenance treatment. Established first-line treatments include lithium, valproate and second-generation antipsychotics (SGAs) in acute mania, and
lithium and valproate as maintenance treatments. Recently validated treatments include extended release carbamazapine
for acute mania and lamotrigine, olanzapine and aripiprazole as maintenance treatments. For treatment-resistant mania
and as maintenance treatments, a number of newer anticonvulsants, and one older one, phenytoin, have shown some
promise as effective. However, not all anticonvulsants are effective and each agent needs to be evaluated individually.
Combining multiple agents is the most commonly used clinical strategy for treatment resistant bipolar patients despite
a relative lack of data supporting its use, except for acute mania (for which lithium or valproate plus an SGA is optimal
treatment). Other approaches that may be effective for treatment-resistant patients include high-dose thyroid augmentation, clozapine, calcium channel blockers and electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). Adjunctive psychotherapies show
convincing efficacy using a variety of different techniques, most of which include substantial attention to education and
enhancing coping strategies. Only recently, bipolar depression has become a topic of serious inquiry with the dominant
controversy focusing on the place of antidepressants in the treatment of bipolar depression. Other than mood stabilizers
alone or the combination of mood stabilizers and antidepressants, most of the approaches for treatment-resistant biponent place for SGAs, prescribed either alone or in combination with antidepressants. Future work in the area needs to
explore the treatments commonly used by clinicians with inadequate research supports, such as combination therapy
and the use of antidepressants as both acute and adjunctive maintenance treatments for bipolar disorder.
(Reprinted with permission from Macmillian Publishers Ltd: Molecular Psychiatry 2006; 11:227–240)
With the first report of lithium’s efficacy in 1949 by
Cade, bipolar disorder has the longest record of
treatment efficacy among the major Axis I disorders. Furthermore, after more than half a century of
clinical research, multiple agents from many different pharmacological classes have shown at least
some efficacy, while many other agents (albeit without a consistent database demonstrating their utility) are prescribed regularly by clinicians. Yet, despite this plethora of choices, treatment of bipolar
disorder remains suboptimal from the points of
view of clinicians and patients alike. Whether measured by recovery time from manic or depressive
episodes or preventive efficacy of maintenance
treatments, bipolar disorder is characterized by
sluggish responses, inadequate responses, poor
compliance and recurrences in controlled clinical
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lar depression are relatively similar to those used in unipolar depression, with the possible exception of a more promi-
trials. Results of naturalistic studies additionally
show pervasive, often chronic symptoms, multiple
episode recurrences, very infrequent euthymic periods when measured over years and marked functional disability in many patients. Thus, despite the
explosion of options over the last quarter century
when lithium dominated treatment, treatment resistance remains a central problem in bipolar disorder.
NATURAL HISTORY OF TREATED
BIPOLAR DISORDER
Without a consensual definition of treatment resistance, it is impossible to estimate the number of
treatment-resistant bipolar patients. However, observing the course of naturalistically treated patients
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Table 1. Considerations for Criteria for
Treatment Resistance in Bipolar
Disorder
Specify phase
Acute mania
Acute depression
Breakthrough episodes during maintenance treatment
Functional outcome
Specify number of failed adequate treatments
Define minimum threshold dose of treatment
Consider exclusion of treatment-intolerant subjects
Exclude subjects on antidepressants in defining those with treatmentresistant mania or continued cycling?
Define response
For acute mania, 50% decrease in Young Mania Rating Scale
(YMRS) vs YMRS score below a specified threshold
For maintenance treatment, one breakthrough episode vs ⬎ one
episode in specified time frame
Require specified number of combination treatments
Consider exclusion of noncompliance-precipitated episodes
may give some indication of how effective typical
treatments are. A number of studies over the last
decade have demonstrated both high recurrence
rates and symptom chronicity of bipolar patients
treated naturalistically. In the largest recent naturalistic study in the United States, Judd et al. followed both bipolar I patients (n ⫽ 146) (1) and
bipolar II patients (n ⫽ 86) (2) for a mean of approximately 13 years, using prospective mood ratings. Bipolar I patients were symptomatically ill for
47% of the weeks, while bipolar II patients were
symptomatic for 54% of the observed weeks. Subsyndromal symptoms were more common than
syndromal states in both bipolar Is and IIs. Depressive symptoms were more common than manic/
hypomanic symptoms by a 3:1 ratio in bipolar I
patients. In bipolar II patients, depressive weeks
outnumbered hypomanic weeks by a 39:1 ratio.
Polarity shifts occurred an average of 3.5 times per
year in Bipolar Is and 1.3 times per year in Bipolar
IIs. Thus, for these patients, symptoms were
chronic, subsyndromal and primarily depressive.
Since these patients were treated in an open, naturalistic manner, it is impossible to make judgments
as to whether a systematic treatment algorithm
might have improved the outcome of these bipolar
patients. Nonetheless, it is clear that, for many patients, although treatment might be more effective
than no treatment, mood symptoms and polarity
shifts still dominate the clinical picture, implying
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that our typical treatments are woefully inadequate
for sustaining euthymic mood over a long period of
time.
Additionally, other studies of bipolar patients
consistently demonstrate that naturalistically
treated patients do poorly, as measured by social
relationships, occupational status, quality of life
and other measures of function (3). Of course, a
clear relationship exists between symptom/syndromal outcome and functional outcome (4). This relationship, however, is far from linear and may best
be described as circular, with poor outcome in either domain predicting poor outcome in the other
domain (5). Thus, whether measured by symptom/
syndrome/recurrence status or functional status,
the majority of treated bipolar patients have a less
than satisfactory outcome.
DEFINITIONS
OF TREATMENT-RESISTANT
BIPOLAR DISORDER
No consensual definitions of treatment-resistant
bipolar disorder exist. A number of parameters
should be considered in the definition, as delineated in Table 1.
First, the phase of the disorder should be specified. In most studies, these are either acute manias
or breakthough episodes during maintenance treatment. Definitions of treatment-resistant bipolar
depression have generally not been considered. For
bipolar depression, criteria used for treatment-resistant unipolar depression would apply, (6) with the
proviso that failure to respond to mood stabilizers
as well as antidepressants should be added to the
definition. Since most definitions of treatment resistance are symptom and syndrome based, functional outcome is rarely considered in the definition
of treatment resistance. However, from the patient
and family’s viewpoint and from a public health
perspective, it should be considered.
Most definitions for treatment resistance in acute
episodes (either mania or depression) utilize the
failure to respond to a specified number of treatments that are generally considered effective (6).
Similarly, treatment resistance in maintenance
treatment is typically defined as continued cycling
despite adequate trials of previously demonstrated
effective treatments. In most studies, failure to respond to a specified number of prior treatments
(typically two or three) is used as the threshold for
treatment resistance. Some studies, however, include subjects who either fail to respond or are intolerant of prior treatments (7, 8). Conflating treatment resistance with treatment intolerance
unfortunately dilutes the sample treated, since
these two groups are arguably distinct. A similar
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FIRST-LINE
TREATMENTS FOR BIPOLAR
DISORDER
Established first-line treatments, used for at least a
decade and/or for which there are ample clinical
and research data, are listed in Table 2.
For acute mania, first-line treatments have long
included lithium, valproate and first-generation anti-psychotics (FGAs). However, among the FGAs,
only chlorpromazine has received a Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) indication for this purpose.
Five of the second-generation antipsychotics
(SGAs) are FDA indicated for acute mania. Even
though their use in treating acute mania is relatively
recent, they are listed as first-line agents since they
are generally used first line in most inpatient settings. No published data currently exist supporting
the use of one of the SGAs vs another in treating
acute mania. Nonetheless, at least in inpatient settings, aripiprazole and ziprasidone are prescribed
less frequently than risperidone, olanzapine or
quetiapine. This assuredly reflects both the earlier
release in the United States of the three latter agents
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First-line Treatments for Bipolar
Disorder
Table 2.
For acute mania
Lithium
Valproate (either divalproex sodium or sodium valproate)
First-generation antipsychoticsa
Second generation antipsychotics
Olanzapine
Risperidone
Quetiapine
Zisprasidone
Aripiprazole
Maintenance treatment
Lithium
Valproate (either divalproex sodium or sodium valproate)b
a
Among first-generation antipsychotics, only chlorpromazine is FDA indicated; vast
clinical experience with other agents.
b
Valproate is not FDA indicated as maintenance treatment in bipolar disorder, but is widely
used with general acceptance of clinical efficacy.
as well as the greater sedation associated with their
use. Sedation is often used on inpatient units for
behavioral control as well as for treating the acute
mania itself.
For maintenance treatment, lithium has long
been a mainstay, receiving an FDA indication for
this purpose in 1974. Valproate (either divalproex
sodium or generic valproic acid) is not FDA indicated for maintenance treatment in bipolar disorder, due to its lack of separation from placebo in a
large, placebo-controlled study (11). A number of
methodological factors may explain this unanticipated result, including the requirement of more
consistent euthymia in subjects and the use of a
non-enriched sample (in contrast to later studies
evaluating olanzapine (12) and lamotrigine (13) in
which study design utilized an enriched sample).
Nonetheless, clinical consensus, Expert Consensus
Guidelines, (14) published algorithms (15) and
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distinction has been made in the treatment-resistant depression literature in which treatment-nonresponsive patients who have been unable to tolerate adequate antidepressant trials are specified as
pseudoresistant to distinguish them from true treatment failures. Some authors (9) additionally require the absence of antidepressants in the definition of both acute mania and maintenance
treatment, reasoning that the antidepressant could
either exacerbate the mania or ‘drive’ the mood
instability. Finally, given the frequency with which
bipolar patients are treated with medication combinations, future definitions of treatment resistance
in bipolar disorder should consider requiring a failure to respond to one or more combination treatments, whether in acute mania or in maintenance
treatment.
Since treatment non-compliance in bipolar disorder is so common, especially in maintenance
treatment (10), both researchers and clinicians alike
need to be alert to patients whose seeming treatment resistance is based not on a failure to respond
but simply because treatment was discontinued, either fully or partially. Treatment strategies would
surely differ between non-compliance-precipitated
episodes and cycling vs true breakthrough episodes.
Of course, if a manic episode occurs in the context
of non-compliance, it is imperative to establish
whether the patient discontinued treatment and
the episode followed, or whether the patient became hypomanic, discontinued treatment at that
point and then became even more symptomatic.
Recently Validated Treatment
Options in Bipolar Disorder
Table 3.
Acute mania
Carbamazepine-ER
Maintenance treatment
Lamotrigine
Olanzapine
Aripiprazole
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Practice Guidelines (16) all support the efficacy of
valproate as a first-line maintenance treatment in
bipolar disorder.
RECENTLY
VALIDATED TREATMENT
OPTIONS IN BIPOLAR DISORDER
Although carbamazepine was the first anticonvulsant used in treating acute mania, few well-controlled studies supported its use as a first-line agent
in treating acute mania (Table 3). Additionally, the
loss of the original patent protection well over a
decade ago stopped any pharmaceutical firm support for research into carbamazepine’s efficacy.
More recently, however, an extended release preparation of carbamazepine has shown efficacy as an
acute antimanic treatment in two double-blind,
placebo-controlled studies (17, 18). On the
strength of these data, carbamazepine-ER received
an FDA indication for acute mania.
Until 2003, lithium was the only mood stabilizer
with an FDA indication as a maintenance treatment in bipolar disorder. Over the last 2 years,
however, three additional treatments have received
FDA indications as maintenance treatments.
In two studies, evaluating recently manic/hypomanic and recently depressed patients, lamotrigine
successfully prevented mood episode recurrences as
measured by the time to intervention (19, 20).
Since the design for these two studies is identical,
with the exception of the pole of the most recent
episode (recently manic/hypomanic (19) vs depressed (20)), the results of these two studies were
combined and the data reanalyzed (13). In this
analysis, lamotrigine effectively prolonged the time
to intervention for both manias and depressions
independently compared to placebo (P ⫽ 0.034
and 0.009, respectively). Of note, lithium was used
as an active comparator in these studies. In the
combined analysis, lithium was significantly more
effective than lamotrigine in prolonging time to
mania, P ⫽ 0.03 (even though both active treatments were more effective than placebo), while lithium was not more effective than placebo in prolonging time to depression, P ⫽ 0.12.
Two SGAs have additionally demonstrated efficacy as maintenance treatments in bipolar disorder with both receiving FDA indications.
Olanzapine has been evaluated in three different
controlled trials with comparisons to placebo,
(12) lithium (21) and divalproex (22). In the
placebo-controlled trial, olanzapine significantly decreased total relapses (relapse rates ⫽ 80
vs 47%, P ⬍ 0.001), manic relapses (41 vs 16%,
P ⬍ 0.001) and depressive relapses (48 vs 34%,
P ⬍ 0.02). (12) In a 1-year trial with no placebo
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controls, olanzapine (mean daily dose ⫽ 13.5
mg) was somewhat more effective than lithium
(mean serum level ⫽ 0.7 mEq/l) in preventing
symptomatic recurrence of mood episodes (P ⫽
0.055) (21). No significant difference in depressive recurrence rates were seen, while significantly fewer olanzapine-treated patients had
manic/mixed recurrences compared to lithiumtreated patients (23 vs 14%, P ⬍ 0.02). In the
47-week non-placebo-controlled trial comparing
olanzapine vs divalproex sodium, no significant
differences between the two medications were
seen in overall recurrence rates (P ⫽ 0.42) (22).
However, treatment discontinuation rate during
this study across both treatment groups was
84%, with the majority of patients discontinuing
for reasons other than lack of efficacy.
In a 6-month study, aripiprazole was more effective than placebo in preventing mood episodes (43
vs 25%, P ⫽ 0.013) in 161 patients (23).
TREATMENT-RESISTANT
BIPOLAR
DISORDER
Aside from the treatments described above, a remarkable variety of other approaches for treatmentresistant bipolar disorder, listed in Table 4, have
been described.
With the exception of adjunctive psychotherapies (reviewed below), none have been validated by
large-scale controlled studies. Some of these approaches have even been shown to be ineffective,
but are still prescribed occasionally and may be of
benefit to a few patients. Additionally, there is a
presumption that a medication that is ineffective in
treating acute mania will not be effective in other
phases. After a negative set of studies for acute mania, new treatments are often abandoned as potential maintenance treatments. This is neither logically nor empirically so. As an example, lamotrigine
is ineffective in acute mania (24) but has shown
efficacy in bipolar depression and as a maintenance
treatment (13).
ANTICONVULSANTS
Aside from the anticonvulsants listed above, all recently released anticonvulsants and one older agent
have been evaluated, either in open-case series or in
some controlled trials, in bipolar disorder. In the
following review, only case series with five or more
subjects will be discussed.
Ironically, phenytoin, the oldest of the agents, is
the only anticonvulsant in Table 4 with any substantially controlled data supporting its use in bipolar disorder. In a double-blind placebo-con-
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Options for Treatment-resistant
Bipolar Disorder
Table 4.
Other anticonvulsants
Phenytoin
Oxcarbazepine
Levetiracetam
Zonisamide
Topiramate
Gabapentin
Tiagabine
Combination treatment
High-dose thyroid augmentation
Clozapine
Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)
Omega-3 fatty acids
Calcium channel blocker
Other agents
Stimulants
Donepezil
Mexiletine
Adjunctive psychotherapies
Family-focused treatment (FFT)
Cognitive therapy
Group psychoeducation
Interpersonal and social rhythm therapy (IPSRT)
disorder, topiramate showed promise, both for the
initial positive reports in open trials (36) and for its
documented weight-losing properties (37, 38). Unfortunately, in a series of controlled trials for acute
mania, topiramate was no better than placebo (39).
A mono-therapy trial comparing topiramate vs placebo in acute manic episodes in children and adolescents was terminated prematurely due to the
negative adult data (40). However, analysis of the
smaller than designed sample showed some efficacy
of topiramate compared to placebo. Finally, a relatively large open-label study of adjunctive topiramate as a maintenance therapy showed efficacy in
both manic and depressive phases and in overall
symptom reduction (41). Thus, topiramate’s efficacy as a maintenance treatment, either adjunctively or as a solo agent, is still unknown.
Despite a number of positive open trials and
widespread clinical use, gabapentin has not shown
antimanic or general mood-stabilizing properties in
two controlled trials (42, 43). In the first trial, gabapentin was an ineffective add-on treatment com-
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trolled, add-on study of a small (n ⫽ 30) sample of
acutely manic patients, phenytoin 300 – 400 mg
daily demonstrated additive efficacy to haloperidol
(25). In a second small (n ⫽ 23) study by the same
group, phenytoin was compared to placebo when
added blindly to ongoing maintenance treatment
using a crossover design of 6 months each (26).
Phenytoin-teated patients had fewer recurrences
(P ⫽ 0.02).
Oxcarbazepine, a congener of carbamazepine,
has been prescribed over the last few years for
treating both acute mania and as a maintenance
treatment. Only one double-blind, placebo-controlled study for acute mania has been published,
but only seven subjects were included in the
study (27). Three other controlled studies (two
of which had sample sizes of 12 and 20, respectively) in acute mania have been published, comparing oxcarbazepine to lithium, valproate or
haloperidol, but none were placebo controlled
(27). In these studies, oxcarbazepine seemed
equivalently effective to the active comparators.
Despite the lack of controlled data, clinicians
prescribe oxcarbazepine given its biological similarity to carbamazepine and its record of better
tolerability (28). Owing to patent issues, largescale studies on oxcarbazepine’s efficacy in bipolar disorder are unlikely to be forthcoming.
Four open studies, with an aggregate of 79 subjects, have examined the potential efficacy of levetiracetam in bipolar disorder (29 –32). In the largest of these reports, 34 patients who were either
manic/hypomanic or depressed received 500 –3000
mg daily of levetiracetam adjunctively (32). The
more mildly depressed patients seemed to respond
although the open design of the study precludes any
clear interpretation of the results seen. In earlier
open trials, mania/hypomania seemed to improve
when levetiracetam was prescribed either as a solo
treatment or in an add-on design in daily doses up
to 4000 mg.
Three open studies have evaluated the efficacy of
zonisamide in mania or bipolar depression (33–
35). In the largest and most recent of these reports,
zonisamide 100 –500 mg daily was added to the
ongoing regimen of 62 bipolar outpatients, most of
whom were treatment-resistant with either predominantly manic/hypomanic or depressive symptoms (35). Those with manic/mixed symptoms
seemed to respond, while those with depressive
symptoms showed a more modest response. Of
note, only 18% of patients completed the 1-year
trial, mostly due to worsening mood state or lack of
improvement. Modest weight loss was observed
over the course of the trial.
When first evaluated in the treatment of bipolar
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pared to placebo in manic/hypomanic outpatients
(42). Gabapentin was also ineffective in (mostly)
rapid cyclers whether rated for antimanic, antidepressant or overall mood-stabilizing properties
(43). It may, however, be helpful in treating anxiety
in bipolar patients (44).
Three trials, all open label, with a total of 47
treatment-resistant subjects have evaluated the efficacy of tiagabine in both manic, depressive or maintenance phases of treatment (45– 47). None of the
three trials showed particular efficacy in doses between 1 and 40 mg. Four subjects across the three
studies (8.5%) without a prior history of epilepsy
had either well-documented or presumptive seizures. With both poor efficacy and tolerability concerns, tiagabine should not be considered a primary
option even for treatment-resistant bipolar disorder.
COMBINATION
TREATMENTS
Despite the focus on placebo-controlled monotherapy studies, whether for acute mania or as a
maintenance treatment, monotherapy in clinical
practice is the exception rather than the rule (48).
As an example, using data collected a decade ago on
bipolar outpatients, fewer than one in five were on
monotherapy and the majority of patients were being treated by three or more medications, with onethird receiving four or more medications (48). Similarly, in the Stanley Foundation Bipolar Network
database reported in 2004, bipolar patients received
a mean of four different psychotropic medications
during 1 year (49). Finally, a pharmacy database
recently found that 55% of bipolar outpatients
were taking two or more medications (Market
Measures, 2003, unpublished data).
In treating acute mania, a substantial database
consistently demonstrates the superiority of combination treatment over monotherapy. The most
common design is the comparison of an SGA plus
an older mood stabilizer, typically lithium or valproate, compared to lithium or valproate alone.
Consistently, the combination, with controlled
studies available for risperidone, olanzapine and
quetiapine, shows significantly greater efficacy
(50). In some of these add-on studies, only patients
who have failed monotherapy are included, while
other studies examine combination vs single treatment in all eligible patients. Response rates for
combination treatments of acute mania generally
exceed those of lithium or valproate by 20 –25%. No
published studies have evaluated the additive efficacy
of lithium or valproate to an SGA. In the only study of
its type, valproate showed additive efficacy in the
treatment of acute mania when added to a FGA (51).
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Far fewer studies have compared the efficacy of a
combination treatment to monotherapy in the
maintenance phase of bipolar disorder. The few
published controlled studies are marred by small
sample sizes, large dropout rates or unrepresentative tertiary care patients. Over the last decade, only
three controlled trials of combination maintenance
treatment of bipolar disorder have been published
(52–54). In the only large-scale controlled study,
olanzapine plus lithium or valproate was compared
to lithium or valproate alone over 18 months in 99
patients who had responded to the combination for
acute mania (52). Dropout rates were very high;
69% of those on combination and 90% of those on
lithium or valproate alone discontinued the study,
with the majority of dropouts occurring for reasons
other than relapse. Modest additional significant
efficacy was seen with the combination as measured
by median time to symptomatic relapse (as measured by rating scale scores) P ⫽ 0.023, but not by
syndromal relapse rates (29 vs 31%) or time to syndromal relapse.
An initial maintenance treatment pilot study
compared the relative efficacy of lithium plus divalproex sodium vs lithium alone in bipolar patients
treated for up to 1 year (53). Combination treatment was significantly more effective than lithium
alone in preventing relapse (0/5 vs 5/7, P ⫽ 0.014).
Combination treatment was associated with significantly greater side effect burden and a higher study
dropout rate due to side effects. Despite these intriguing preliminary findings, a larger follow-up
study has not been presented or published.
A larger crossover study compared lithium, carbamazepine and the combination in 52 bipolar I
and II patients, with each subject receiving each
medication and the combination for 1 year each
(54). Using Clinical Global Improvement (CGI)
scores, the three treatments did not differ significantly, although a good treatment response was
seen in 33% of patients on lithium, 31% on carbamazepine and 55% on the combination. Of
note, the combination was significantly more effective in rapid cycling patients who did poorly on
both solo agents. Additionally, a subset of patients
showed differential improvement to one or the
other monotherapy, implying that trials of multiple
monotherapies may be worthwhile for those who
do not respond to the first agent.
Clinically, and in case reports and case series,
virtually all medications with mood-stabilizing
properties have been used in combination. (This
includes clinical situations in which patients are
sometimes treated with four or more mood stabilizers.) The only combination that may be relatively
contraindicated is that of carbamazepine and cloza-
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pine, since each produces potentially serious hematological effects (55). With many medication combinations, especially those involving carbamazepine
and/or valproate, pharmacokinetic interactions
must always be considered.
HIGH-DOSE
THYROID AUGMENTATION
CLOZAPINE
Alone among the SGAs, clozapine has not been
the subject of large-scale double-blind studies in
bipolar disorder. This assuredly reflects clozapine’s side effect profile, compliance burden and
dangers of the drug such as cardiomyopathies,
seizures and agranulocytosis with the mandated
regular checks of white cell counts. Another factor explaining the lack of controlled studies is
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ELECTROCONVULSIVE
THERAPY
Although uncommonly used in bipolar disorder,
electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) remains an important option for treatment-resistant bipolar disorder in manic (66) and depressive phases (67) and
as a maintenance treatment (68).
For acute mania, only two relative small prospective, controlled studies have systematically compared ECT to other treatments – lithium (69), and
lithium plus haloperidol (70). ECT was slightly
more effective than lithium in one study and clearly
more effective than the combination treatment in
the other study. It is estimated that ECT is associated with remission or marked clinical improvement in 80% of those treated (66). No consistent
evidence exists suggesting the need for more ECT
treatments in manic compared to depressed patients.
No controlled studies have examined maintenance ECT. Naturalistic studies, which have typically included both unipolar and bipolar patients,
consistently suggest efficacy (68). In the most recent case series, 13 treatment-resistant bipolar I, II
and schizoaffective patients, 10 of whom were over
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The use of high-dose thyroid augmentation for
treatment-resistant bipolar disorder has been evaluated, mostly in open trials, for over 20 years. Despite this length of time, only a handful of reports,
none large-scale and none using classic-controlled
methodologies, have been published. (One of the
older studies employed the only controls–single- or
double-blind placebo substitution – in four of 10
treatment responders. (56)) In aggregate, only 29
subjects, some of whom were unipolar depressives,
all from the same research group, have been evaluated in the studies published over the last 15 years
(57–59). (Some of the subjects in two earlier reports (57,58) are included in the later paper. (59))
Nonetheless, high-dose thyroid hormone augmentation continues as a potential option for treatment-resistant bipolar disorder.
The paradigm of thyroid augmentation for bipolar disorder–which is distinct from the use of subreplacement doses of triiodothyronine as an adjunct for treatment-resistant depression–typically
involves administering high doses of L-thyroxine
for months to years with the goal of decreasing cycle
frequency, mood episode amplitude or both. Mean
doses of L-thyroxine in the two recent publications
were 379 (59) and 482 mcg (58), between 3 and
4.5 ⫻ the daily thyroid replacement dose in the
United States. Thus, patients were treated with supraphysiological doses. In both open studies, treatment-resistant patients showed clear improvement
with mean follow-ups of 2 and 4 years, respectively.
Side effects were surprisingly minimal, given the
high doses of thyoxine prescribed. Concerns regarding the potential for the development of osteoporosis in patients taking high doses of thyroid hormone over extended time periods continue despite
preliminary reassuring results (60,61).
clozapine’s loss of patent protection years ago.
Nonetheless, a large uncontrolled literature suggests that clozapine must be considered as a treatment for refractory bipolar disorder, similar to its
use in schizophrenia (62).
Despite the limitations of an uncontrolled database, clozapine has shown efficacy in treating acute
mania, decreasing depressive symptoms and in
overall mood stabilization. Psychotic symptoms do
not predict an inherently better response to clozapine among treatment-resistant bipolar patients.
Furthermore, among treatment-resistant patients,
compared to schizophrenic patients, those with bipolar disorder may be more responsive to clozapine.
(63) Required doses for optimal effect in bipolar
disorder may be less than for treatment-resistant
schizophrenia (64).
Only one study has systematically compared clozapine as an add-on study to a treatment as usual
group using a random assignment but not blinded
design (65). In this study of 38 treatment-resistant
bipolar I and schizoaffective patients, after 6
months of treatment, clozapine significantly decreased symptoms by 30% or more in 82% of patients compared to 57% in the treatment as usual
group. Using multiple rating scales, clozapine addition was consistently significantly more effective
other than in depression rating scale scores (with
the difference in depression scores differing at a
significance level of 0.06).
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65 years old, showed overall improvement (as measured by decreased numbers of hospitalizations)
with maintenance ECT. Maintenance ECT was
generally given weekly, with no patient able to extend beyond 3-week treatment intervals. Additionally, two patients refused further maintenance ECT
after four treatments: one discontinued treatment
due to cognitive side effects, while another showed
cardiac complications. Thus, although maintenance ECT may be effective, longer times between
treatments (e.g., monthly intervals) is unlikely to be
effective and, in older patients, medical complications may be significant.
OMEGA-3
FATTY ACIDS
Although an initial double-blind, placebo-controlled study indicated the potential efficacy of
omega-3 fatty acids as an adjunctive treatment in
bipolar disorder, no positive data have emerged
over the last 5 years. In the initial study, 30 bipolar
patients (40% rapid cyclers), not selected for operationally defined treatment resistance, were assigned to omega-3 fatty acids, 9.6 g/day added to
their ongoing treatment regimen vs placebo for 4
months. (71) Those treated with omega-3 fatty acids showed significantly longer period of remission
(P ⫽ 0.002), primarily due to prevention of depressive symptoms. These results were consistent with a
small open trial of 12 patients with bipolar I depression treated with the omega fatty acid eicosapentanoic acid (EPA) in which eight of 10 patients
treated for at least 1 month showed an antidepressant response (72).
Unfortunately, the largest recent study in this
area showed negative results. As part of the Stanley
Foundation Bipolar Network studies, 121 bipolar
patients were treated with the omega-3 fatty acid
EPA, 6 g daily vs placebo in a double-blind fashion
for either bipolar depression or rapid cycling (73).
No difference between drug and placebo was apparent in either subgroup.
At this point, the utility of omega-3 fatty acids in
treatment-resistant bipolar disorder is obscure.
Further problems in the area include ignorance
about which omega-3 fatty acids should be prescribed, in what proportion, at what dose, and the
inability to ascertain the quality of the product
since it is not FDA regulated.
CALCIUM
CHANNEL BLOCKERS
A number of calcium channel blockers have been
evaluated as treatments of acute mania and as maintenance treatments in bipolar disorder for over 20
years (74). Results for verapamil are mixed at best.
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Although some studies showed preliminary positive
results (75, 76), other, better controlled studies demon-strated little efficacy (77–78). In the most recent report, 37 women, some of whom were pregnant, were treated with verapamil as monotherapy
in an open fashion (79). Manic or mixed syndromes responded better than depressive syndromes.
Individual calcium channel blockers differ in
their affinity for the different calcium channel
subtypes (74). Thus, data for one agent may not
generalize to the others. Additionally, verapamil
may not penetrate the blood-brain barrier efficiently. Therefore, nimodipine, the most lipophilic calcium channel blocker with a greatest
potential to enter the central nervous system, has
also been evaluated in treatment-resistant bipolar disorder (80). A first open case series of six
acutely manic patients demonstrated some efficacy (81). In the largest controlled study, 10/30
bipolar patients responded to nimodipine with
moderate or marked improvement (82). After
the effective addition of carbamazepine to four
treatment nonresponders, blind substitution of
nimodipine verapamil led to an increase in manic
symptoms, consistent with the differential effects of individual calcium channel blockers. In
two patients, the blind substitution of isradipine,
an agent more similar to nimodipine than verapamil, sustained clinical response.
BENZODIAZEPINES
Benzodiazepines have been used for decades to slow
down manic patients, typically in combination
with lithium, anticonvulsants or antipsychotics. As
solo agents for acute mania, they show efficacy.
Clonazapem and lorazepam have been the subject
of most studies, with more convincing data for the
former (83). This may reflect the relatively higher
doses (adjusted for relative potency) of clonazepam
used in many of the studies.
OTHER
AGENTS
A number of other agents, suggested as effective
antimanic agents or as maintenance treatments for
treatment-resistant bipolar patients, have been the
subject of small preliminary series. The most unusual of these was that of D-amphetamine, which
showed efficacy in doses of 60 mg daily in 5/6
acutely manic inpatients (84).
Donepezil, a reversible acetylcholinesterase inhibitor, was evaluated in doses of 5–10 mg in 11
treatment-resistant bipolar I patients, 10 of
whom were manic, hypomanic or mixed (7). Six
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patients were markedly improved within 6 weeks,
all at the 5-mg dose. No followup studies have
emerged.
Mexiletine, an antiarrhythmic medication with
additional anticonvulsant and analgesic properties,
showed efficacy in doses of 200 –1200 mg daily
when given to 20 treatment-resistant or treatmentintolerant bipolar patients. (8) Of the 13 completers, six (46%) were considered full responders,
including all manic or mixed patients. A followup
double-blind, placebo-controlled study by the same
group evaluated mexiletine in 10 manic or hypomanic subjects (85). Changes in YMRS scores favored mexiletine, but did not reach statistical significance.
PSYCHOSOCIAL
ADJUNCTIVE THERAPIES
FAMILY-FOCUSED
TREATMENT
Adapted from earlier studies on family interventions for schizophrenic patients, FFT is an
amalgam of psychoeducation, communication
skills training for dealing with intrafamilial
stress and problem-solving skills (89), administered as approximately a 20-session therapy over
9 months. Inherent in this treatment model is the
need for at least one relative with whom the patient either lives or is in regular contact (four or
more hours weekly). When compared to a control group (n ⫽ 70) that received two educational
sessions and emergency counseling sessions as
needed, patients (n ⫽ 31) receiving FFT showed
fewer relapses and longer time to relapse and
greater improvement in depressive symptoms
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COGNITIVE
THERAPY
When combined with pharmacotherapy, individual CT administered in 12–18 sessions over the first
6 months with two booster sessions over the next 6
months (n ⫽ 51) has also demonstrated efficacy in
bipolar disorder compared to pharmacotherapy
alone (n ⫽ 52) (93, 94). CT patients had fewer
relapses at 12 months (75 vs 44%, P ⫽ 0.004),
fewer bipolar episodes (P ⫽ 0.008), fewer days ill
(P ⫽ 0.008) and fewer days in hospital (mean ⫽ 10
vs 18 days, P ⫽ 0.02). Significant additional benefits were seen in medication compliance, mean depressive symptom ratings and enhanced social
functioning. At 2-year followup (after the original
6-month treatment period) differences between the
two groups had faded over the last 18 months of
followup, with overall effect of relapse reduction
strongest during the first 12 months of treatment (94).
GROUP
INFLUENTIAL
PUBLICATIONS
Of the treatments listed in Table 4, the most consistent and largest database has demonstrated the
additive efficacy of a variety of psychological therapies in bipolar disorder. In all studies, medication
plus a structured psychotherapy has been compared
to medication plus a less structured psychotherapy
or medication alone. Building on earlier studies
(86 – 88) over the last 5 years, a variety of psychotherapy techniques have been evaluated, including
family-focused treatment (FFT), cognitive therapy
(CT), group psychoeducation, and interpersonal
and social rhythm therapy (IPSRT). For all approaches, the addition of the structured psychotherapy added additional benefit, as measured by a
variety of outcome variables, including longer survival time before relapse, fewer relapses, greater reductions in symptom rating scales, enhanced compliance, fewer days in mood episodes, improved
social functioning, and fewer and shorter hospitalizations.
(but not manic symptoms) over one year (90).
Improvements were greatest among FFT patients
whose families were high in expressed emotion, a
construct composed of critical comments towards the patient and/or overinvolvement with
the patient. A 2-year followup showed continuation of treatment effect with FFT patients experiencing fewer relapses (35 vs 54%, hazard ratio ⫽ 0.38), longer survival intervals (74 vs 53
weeks, P ⫽ 0.003), greater medication adherence
and greater reduction in mood symptoms (91).
Medication adherence mediated positive effects
on mania symptoms but not depressive symptoms.
Another study from the same group compared
FFT (n ⫽ 28) to a briefer individual therapy that
was supportive, educational and problem-focused
(n ⫽ 25) (92). Over the first year of followup, FFT
demonstrated some weakly greater treatment efficacy compared to individual therapy. Over the
2-year study period (including 1 year of treatment
and another year of followup) however, FFT was
associated with significantly fewer total relapses and
fewer hospitalizations.
PSYCHOEDUCATION
Group education with 8 –12 patients per group was
compared with nonstructured group interaction
over 21 sessions in 120 remitted bipolar I and II
patients in maintenance pharmacotherapy, followed over 2 years (95). Fewer patients receiving
group education relapsed (67 vs 92%, P ⬍ 0.001).
Numbers of depressions, manias, hospitalizations
and days of hospitalizations were also significantly
reduced.
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INTERPERSONAL
AND SOCIAL RHYTHM THERAPY
IPSRT, an individual therapy derived from interpersonal therapy, focuses on resolution of interpersonal problems, prevention of future problems in these areas, the importance of
maintaining regularity in daily routines, and the
links between mood symptoms and the quality of
social relationships and social roles (96). IPSRT
was compared to intensive clinical management
(ICM), which focused on education, symptom
and medication review and nonspecific support.
In a study of 175 subjects with bipolar I disorder
treated during an acute stabilization phase and
then a two-year maintenance phase with subjects
assigned to either the same or different treatment
protocol during the two phases, IPSRT administered during the acute phase was associated with
a longer time until a mood episode (P ⫽ 0.01).
This improvement was related to the increase in
regularity of social rhythms (P ⬍ 0.05). IPSRT
administered during the maintenance phase did
not show enhanced efficacy compared to ICM.
COMBINED
PSYCHOTHERAPIES
A combination of IPRST and IFIT for 1 year was
significantly more effective than a control group
(derived from the data of the earlier FFT study,
(90) in extending the time to relapse, with mean
survival times ⫽ 43 vs 35 weeks (P ⬍ 0.02), and in
reducing depressive symptoms (P ⬍ 0.0001), but
not manic symptoms (97).
PSYCHOTHERAPY
SUMMARY
The demonstrated efficacy of a number of different
psychotherapies in decreasing mood symptoms, delaying time to relapse, and reducing hospitalization
rates and days likely reflects some common positive
effect of what, at first glance, seem like different
treatment approaches. The clearest common elements of these psychotherapies are education and
the development of more effective coping mechanisms. (Seemingly, the latter can be addressed
through individual IPT-focused therapy CT, or
family problem-solving approaches.) At this point,
it would be impossible to suggest one psychotherapeutic approach over another. Group therapy
would seem to be the most economical; familyfocused therapy may be optimal for bipolar patients
with intrusive, hostile families. The relatively
weaker comparative efficacy data of IPSRT may
reflect, among other factors, the strengths of the
comparison treatment, which incorporated many
effective psychotherapeutic principles.
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Since few practitioners, especially physicians,
are trained in any of the structured approaches
just described, the efficacy of multiple approaches may indicate a set of core principles (as
yet unidentified through research) for effective
psychotherapy with bipolar patients. However,
given some of the commonalities used in the
therapies, experienced clin-icians can consider
adapting the principles and using them in a flexible manner, as is universal in nonresearch settings. The important principle, however, is that
adjunctive psychotherapies add significantly
(both statistically and clinically) to the efficacy of
pharmacological treatment regimens.
BIPOLAR
DEPRESSION
Until recently, bipolar depression has received far
less attention than mania. With increasing data
demonstrating that depression is the dominant pole
in bipolar disorder (1, 2), and with the emergence
of lamotrigine as the first mood stabilizer with better efficacy at either treating or preventing depression than mania (13, 98), research on optimal treatments for bipolar depression has been increasing. A
full exploration of the controversies about treating
bipolar depression is beyond the scope of this article. Interested readers may find a number of recent
reviews and meta-analyses (99 –102). However, despite the greater recent interest in the topic, a lack of
a sufficient database and disagreements about its
classic treatment have precluded a consensual treatment algorithm for treatment-resistant bipolar depression.
FIRST-LINE
TREATMENT OF BIPOLAR DEPRESSION
The two key differences between the algorithm
for treating unipolar depression vs bipolar depression are: (1) the more prominent place of
mood stabilizers as acute treatment for bipolar
depression, and (2) the concerns about the potential mood-destabilizing effects of antidepressants in bipolar patients. Additionally, the risk/
benefit ratio in prescribing antidepressants in
bipolar depression differs between bipolar I and
bipolar II patients, since both the likelihood and
potential negative consequences of a pharmacological switch differ between these two bipolar
subtypes.
Most Practice Guidelines/Expert Consensus
panels or Treatment Algorithms (14 –16) recommend mood stabilizers, specifically lithium or
lamotrigine as firstline treatments for bipolar I
depression. For severe depression, lithium or
lamotrigine plus an antidepressant should be
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TREATMENT-RESISTANT
BIPOLAR DEPRESSION
Mood stabilizers other than lithium or lamotrigine comprise a first set of options for treatment-resistant bipolar depression. Two small
controlled studies have examined the efficacy of
valproate in bipolar depression. In the first
study, valproate was slightly more effective than
placebo, but with the small sample size (n ⫽ 43),
the difference was nonsignificant (106). In the
other study, divalproex was more effective
than placebo in improving depression symptoms
in 25 outpatients with bipolar I depression
(P ⫽ 0.0002) (107). Remission rates also favored
focus.psychiatryonline.org
divalproex (46 vs 25%), with the difference not
reaching statistical significance.
Three small placebo-controlled double-blind
studies, all 20 years old, have examined the efficacy
of carbamazepine in bipolar depression (108). Carbamazepine was effective, but larger studies are
needed.
In one single-blind study, topiramate was
equivalently effective to bupropion when added
to mood stabilizers in 36 patients with bipolar
depression (109). No placebo control was used in
this study.
In the one controlled study on the topic, gabapentin was not more effective than placebo in improving bipolar depression symptoms (43).
Quetiapine at doses of 300 – 600 mg daily was
significantly more effective than placebo as a solo
treatment for bipolar I or II depression, beginning at week 1 in a large (n ⫽ 542), doubleblind, placebo-controlled trial. (110) Response
rates were 58% for both quetiapine doses compared to 36% for placebo (P ⬍ 0.001). In the
OFC study, olanzapine alone showed some efficacy, but less than was seen with the combination
(103). Comparable data for other SGAs are lacking.
Two small (n ⫽ 22 and 21, respectively), preliminary placebo-controlled double-blind studies have
suggested the efficacy of pramipexole, a D2, D3
agonist when added to stable doses of mood stabilizers in bipolar depression. (111, 112) With a
mean dose of 1.7 mg daily in both studies, and
despite the small number of subjects, pramipexole
was associated with a significantly higher response
rate in depressive symptoms compared to placebo
in each study.
With concerns about both abuse and switch potential, except for small case series (113), there are
few studies on stimulants for bipolar depression. A
recent double-blind, placebo-controlled study,
however, demonstrated the efficacy of modafanil,
used as a stimulant but with an unknown mechanism of action, as an adjunctive treatment in 85
patients with bipolar depression (114). At a mean
daily dose of 177 mg, by week 2, patients treated
with modafanil showed significantly more improvement than placebo-treated patients. Using a
50% decrease in depressive symptoms to define response, modafanil was more effective than placebo
(response rates ⫽ 44 vs 22%, P ⬍ 0.04). Modafanil
was not associated with more manic/hypomanic
switches.
Although for bipolar I depression the use of
antidepressants without mood stabilizers is never
recommended in Practice Guidelines and the
like, preliminary data, all from Amsterdam and
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PUBLICATIONS
considered (14, 16). For bipolar II depression,
however, either lamotrigine or lithium plus an
antidepressant has been recommended (14). Another first-line option for acute bipolar I depression is olanzapine/fluoxetine combination
(OFC), which has been shown to be significantly
more effective than placebo or olanzapine alone
(103). (Of note, in this large study, fluoxetine
alone was not studied, thereby precluding knowing whether OFC’s efficacy was solely due to
fluoxetine with olanzapine presumably decreasing the likelihood of pharmacological mania or
due to a unique synergistic effect of the medication combination.)
The place of antidepressants in treating bipolar
depression has been the largest source of controversy. One group of experts focus on: (1) the
potential negative consequences of antidepressants– the risk of pharmacological manias/hypomanias and mood destabilization; (2) the greater
database on lithium’s efficacy in preventing suicide compared to antidepressants; (3) the lack of
consistent efficacy of antidepressants in both
acute bipolar depression and their lesser efficacy
compared to mood stabilizers in preventing depression; and (4) the efficacy of lithium and lamotrigine for both acute bipolar depression and as
maintenance treatments (104). In contrast, others examine the same database and conclude that
the database for efficacy of mood stabilizers in
treating bipolar depression is weak, the efficacy
of antidepressants greater and the switch rate associated with the newer antidepressants substantially lower than for the first-generation agents
(tricyclics and monoamine oxidase inhibitors)
(101, 105).
In general, however, we can assume that lithum,
lamotrigine, OFC and antidepressants (combined
with mood stabilizers) comprise first-line treatments for bipolar I depression.
59
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Table 5.
Bipolar Depression
First-line options for acute bipolar depression
Lamotrigine
Lithium
Antidepressants (in combination with mood stabilizers for bipolar I
depression)
Olanzapine/fluoxetine combination
Options for treatment-resistant bipolar depression
Anticonvulsants
Valproate
Carbamazepine
Topiramate
Second-generation antipsychotics
Quetiapine
Olanzapine
Pramipexole
Modafanil
Stimulants
Antidepressants as solo treatments for bipolar II depression
Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)
colleagues, suggest that patients with bipolar II
depression and even some with bipolar I depression may be effectively treated with newer antidepressants as solo agents with minimal risk of
pharmacological hypo-manias/manias (115–120).
Fluoxetine was evaluated in three of four studies
(115, 118 –120) with venlafaxine used in the other
(116, 117). Questions have been raised about the
diagnosis of bipolar II disorder in two of these studies (with the diagnosis being made retrospectively
by chart review in the largest study (115)). Although these findings are controversial, they do
open the possibility that the newer antidepressants
may be associated with lower switch rates for bipolar II patients than previously recognized and may
be safely used.
As with unipolar depression, ECT should always
be considered for treatment-resistant bipolar depression (67).
Finally, it must be acknowledged that clinicians routinely add to mood stabilizers the same
set of adjunctive and combination therapies for
treatment-resistant bipolar depression that they
do with unipolar patients (6). Unfortunately, no
studies have examined either the efficacy or
switch rate associated with these more aggressive
clinical strategies.
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OF BIPOLAR DEPRESSION
Although most treatment recommendations specifically suggest using antidepressants for acute depressive episodes with the goal of discontinuing
them as soon as possible (with the assumption that
the patient will continue to be on mood stabilizers),
recent evidence has suggested that longer-term
mood stabilizer/antidepressant treatment may be
helpful for some bipolar patients. In two separate
retrospective analyses, bipolar patients who continued on anti-depressants along with their mood stabilizers had fewer depressive relapses (32 vs 68%
and 36 vs 70%) and no increase in manic episodes
(121, 122). Additionally, in the larger of the two
studies, patients continued on maintenance antidepressants were significantly less likely to develop a
manic episode. (P ⫽ 0.003). Patients in these studies were clearly a small subgroup of the total bipolar
depressed patient population. Nonetheless, these
retrospective analyses suggest that some bipolar patients whose illness is dominated by depressions
may do best on a maintenance combination of
mood stabilizers and antidepressants.
FUTURE
Combinations
60
PREVENTION
DIRECTIONS
Systematic study of treatment-resistant bipolar disorder is still in its infancy. Beyond the consistent
observation that SGAs in combination with either
lithium or valproate are effective antimanic regimens, and that clozapine or ECT should be considered in refractory cases, the literature has little to
guide clinicians. Owing to both proprietary concerns by pharmaceutical companies and the desire
for hypothesis-driven and methodologically ‘correct’ studies, funding agencies shy away from the
messy treatments regularly prescribed by clinicians.
Although virtually all areas need more study, the
three most vital are: combination treatments as
maintenance therapy in bipolar disorder; the use of
antidepressants, singly, in combination, with and
without mood stabilizers for treatment-resistant bipolar depression; and maybe most important, techniques to enhance compliance, since rates of study
completion in maintenance treatments of bipolar
disorder are abysmally low. Finally, the psychotherapy data must be translated into clinically usable
tools, focusing on techniques that are less manual
driven and more adaptable to the realities of clinical
practice.
CONCLUSION
Our ability to effectively treat refractory bipolar
disorder remains problematic. Although we have
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established treatments for acute mania and maintenance treatments that are statistically more effective
than placebo, too many patients either do not respond or do not adhere to treatment sufficiently to
receive benefit. Additionally, our database on depression, the dominant pole of bipolar disorder, is
very small, although growing. For now, optimal
therapy for treatment-resistant bipolar disorder will
consist of using treatments for which little or only
preliminary data exist, as listed in Tables 4 and 5, or
medication combinations. The recent solid data on
the additive efficacy of a variety of psychotherapeutic techniques must be publicized and optimal
methods of utilizing these techniques in clinical
practice must be explored. One can only hope that,
a decade from now, clinical research can usefully
inform clinicians on the basis of good data rather
than Expert Consensus.
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